


First Time's The Charm

by pistolgrip



Category: THE iDOLM@STER, THE iDOLM@STER: SideM
Genre: M/M, One Shot
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-08-08
Updated: 2017-08-08
Packaged: 2018-12-12 15:28:03
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,090
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11739900
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/pistolgrip/pseuds/pistolgrip
Summary: Daigo wants to go out with Ryo, in more ways than one.





	First Time's The Charm

**Author's Note:**

  * For [franchouchou](https://archiveofourown.org/users/franchouchou/gifts).



“...For someone who’s already a full-time idol, you sure have no qualms about being out in the open, do you, Daigo?” Out of the corner of his eye, Ryo sees Kazuki’s pen moving steadily over the page, and he sees their producer’s head in their hands as they work over scheduling with Ken. That removes anyone in the room who can help him, and so he turns his gaze back to Daigo—whose smile hasn’t faltered at all.

“Aw, c’mon. It’ll be, like, a few hours at most. And we work so hard, we can leave for a  _ little _ bit, yeah, Boss?” Daigo hollers to the other side of the room, where their producer hums absentmindedly, still frowning at the whiteboard in front of them.

“See? Seal of approval! Just for a few hours, Ryo! Here,” Daigo says, and one second he’s in front of Ryo and the next he’s somehow across the room, shoving his pink disaster hair into Kazuki’s red beanie while simultaneously shrugging on Kazuki’s coat. “I’m  _ disguised  _ now.”

Despite himself, Ryo smiles at his energy. It’s nice to go out with Daigo every once in a while, anyway; Ryo gets to relax about the way he presents himself, and Daigo has the chance to go out on his own, his bodyguards forced to protect from the sidelines.

“Aha!  _ That _ was a smile, yeah? And  _ that _ means we’re heading out!” Daigo grabs his hand—and he does this often, with just enough force to prompt movement but not to actually move him. Without thinking, Ryo accepts it. It’s only natural.

“We’ll be back in a bit, Boss!” Daigo chirps, throwing Ryo’s coat at him.

“Keep your phone on this time,” their producer says, and Ken says something about staying warm, but they’re already halfway out the door.

 

* * *

Daigo doesn’t let go of his hand the entire time they walk. It’s not uncomfortable. In fact, it’s probably too comfortable, and Ryo desperately tries to convince himself that the warmth he feels across his face is from the cold, and not pleased embarrassment.

They walk aimlessly around the city, Daigo chattering on about whatever solo jobs Producer’s gotten him to do, Ryo chiming in every once in a while, when they pass in front of a coffee shop. Daigo asks, scratching behind his ear, “Say, Ryo, ya ever been on a date?”

Ryo sputters. He makes a strangled noise. He looks around, because Daigo sometimes forgets to control his volume, to make sure no one is looking. His grip on Daigo’s hand doesn’t change, but it’s probably a bit sweatier now. “No?”

“Neat,” Daigo says, gesturing towards the door. “Let’s go. I’ll grab a table in the corner, don’t worry!”

And just like that, they find themselves sitting at a small table in the back of a coffee shop. A waitress delivers them their coffee, and Ryo is crossing and uncrossing his legs and trying not to frown. Or smile. There’s a lot of facial expressions he’s trying not to make, and he probably fails at all of them.

To his credit, Daigo doesn’t comment. In fact, he’s scratching behind his ear again, and Ryo  _ knew _ it wasn’t a nervous habit because he subtly pulls out an earpiece and stows it away somewhere. He doesn’t know how to interpret this. Does this make it a real, official date? Will the yakuza end up killing him for interfering with the Kabuto clan’s plans for an heir? “So, Daigo, what’s the plan?”

“A date,” he says, like saying it again will clear it up.

Ryo sputters less, but it still happens. “A _date?!”_ he says, like saying it _yet_ _again_ will make it less confusing.

“I know, I know.” Daigo’s shoulders slump slightly. Ryo tilts his head, inviting more information. “It’s—my family’s already startin’ an arranged marriage thing. And I ain’t ever gone on a date, so I figure, there ain’t anyone better to ask than you.”

“You don’t know any girls, so you thought you’d just ask me instead?”  _ It’s  _ Daigo.  _ It can’t just be one of these things, can it? _

“What? Nah.” (Ryo breathes a sigh of relief.) “I jus’ wanted to make sure my first ever date was with someone I actually liked.” Daigo grins wider now, but there’s a nervousness in his eyes that wasn’t there before.

Ryo is no more eloquent than he was the past few times; Daigo seems to have a talent in dropping important information so casually. But now that the line of questioning’s become more clear, there’s something he has to address. “W-Well, Daigo...”

“Yeah?”

Ryo watches Daigo’s expression freeze in place, and he tries to gather his words. He’s been so blindsided by the confession of sorts that he doesn’t even know how to start explaining that idols don’t (and often can’t) romance, that it’s generally frowned upon. “That’s… sweet, but we’re going to have to be very careful about it, you know?”

“Duh. If my family sees this happenin’, they’ll lose their minds!” He laughs, but his expression is still tense.

“As idols, too… Dating isn’t…” Ryo trails off there. He doesn’t need to add how much being an idol means to him, because he knows Daigo is the same—not just about his own career, but about Ryo’s and Kazuki’s, too.

“This one’s just for fun, though, innit? Doesn’t have to be nothin’ serious if you don’t want,” and Daigo’s smile is so easy that Ryo considers the proposition—as if he hasn’t  _ already _ considered it, as if any part of him wanted to walk away the second the word  _ date _ first tumbled out of Daigo’s mouth. His eyes flicker towards the window to see where Daigo’s bodyguards are, but their line of sight is completely blocked.

He sure can put the effort into being more inconspicuous when he feels like it—and when has Ryo’s career not been about taking risks for the things he really wants? Putting his elbows on the table, he leans over it, and narrows his eyes. “Okay,” he starts, “but be caref—”

He’s cut off when Daigo closes the distance between them with a short peck on the lips, effectively cutting off anything Ryo is saying. For the first time that day, Ryo has enough dignity to not make weird strangled noises, but he can’t control the way his heart starts beating when Daigo is very much affected by the gesture too, the grin on his face looking a little goofier than usual, his cheeks a matching shade of red.

“Gotcha.”

 

 


End file.
